News: GOTM 65 - Starts 1 April

[jesusin]

GOTM 65: Sigfodr the Nibelung

[img=right]http://gotm.civfanatics.net/civ4games/images/gotm65civ.jpg[/img]


Sigfodr my son, let your fame stand up to your name! Lead your people, find the Rhine's Gold, claim the Nibelung Ring, pile the skulls of your enemies and bring glory to the Nibelung tribe! I bless you.



Game settings:

Civilization: Nibelung (Leader: Sigfodr; Traits: Expansive, Industrious)
Rivals: 6 AIs
Difficulty: Monarch
Map: Rhine
Mapsize: Standard
Climate: Cold
Sea Level: Medium
Starting Era: Ancient
Speed: Normal
Options: None
Victory Conditions: all enabled

Sigfodr:

Sigfodr is Expansive and Industrious ; starting with Hunting and Mining. As you are Expansive, your cities get 3 free health and you also get double speed Granary and Harbor. Being Industrious you get +50% wonder production and you also get double speed Forge.




Unique unit: Panzer(replaces Tank)

This unit has an additional 50% against Armored units.

Starting screenshot

This is the start of the game (click for a bigger image):




Adventurer Class bonuses:

1. Prince: You play the game at Prince difficulty, although AI will receive Monarch starting units.

Challenger Class Equalisers:

1. Emperor: You play the game at Emperor difficulty, although AI will receive Monarch starting units and you will score as if playing on Monarch.
   

To Enter the Competition:

This competition will open on 1 April 2011. From that date, you'll be able to get your chosen starting save >>>here<<<.
Submit the save after your victory (or defeat) here, by 1 May 2011.

Software Versions

Windows: This game MUST be played in Civilization 4 (NOT Warlords or BTS), patched to version 1.74, and with the HOF mod version 1.74.004 installed. You can download the HOF mod here. Players using Windows Vista are encouraged to read the notes on Vista fixes here.

Macintosh: This game MUST be played in Civilization 4 (NOT Warlords), patched to version 1.74, and with the Mac HOF mod version 1.74.002 installed. You can download the HOF mod here.


While playing...

Remember - for your entry to be accepted, it MUST be your first attempt to play this game, and you MUST NOT replay any turns. If you make a mistake while playing, you have to live with it, learn from it, and carry on the game without replaying.

We will open 'spoiler' threads during the month for players to discuss what happens in their games. Do not discuss any details of the game outside those threads while it is in progress.

Please write here or send me a Private Message for any technical queries, eg. if you have trouble opening the game. Do NOT post in this thread once you have successfully opened the starting save.

 

[-Asterix-]

Where did you hide all the resources?

And what kind of map is "Rhine"?

 

[jesusin]

Where did you hide all the resources?

And what kind of map is "Rhine"?

"Rhine" is a new type of map, especifically created by the map-maker for this particular game. Apart from the remebrances of a certain river it brings to mind, no more information about the map is available to players. (*)


All the resources visible at game start are visible in the provided screenshot. Control+R function is on. The map-maker claims the starting area has not been modified from what was given by the game. (*)


*Remember: Never trust a map-maker.

 

[neilmeister]

After googling the terms, we are either Dwarfs, or is there some vast treasure to be found.

I look forward to a pile of gold/gems/silver right near us (pretty please).

Maybe Jesusin is trying to teach us to move our settlers to where the resources are, it is certainly one of his particular vices (if you don't mind me saying).

If I was to speculate (well, its not an if really, as I am doing it), then I would say that maybe a Rhine map might divide the map into 2, or it will be a massive river system with FW tiles almost everywhere.

Scout to the 1 NW, then maybe the GH. Settler 1S, then maybe W to the GH.
I will not be settling turn 1, thats almost a certainty.

 

[magicgunnar]

It could be a map of europe.

But desert to the south-west doesn't fit in then.

I think there is a lot of gold nearby.

 

[Cactus Pete]

Isn't Sigfodr a fantasy character from another game?

What does Control+R do?

 

[wwassme]

"Das Rheingold (The Rhine Gold) is the first of the four operas comprising Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung)." A character in the opera is Wotan, who is better known as Odin, the chief god of Norse mythology. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Das_Rheingold#Roles

"Odin was referred to by more than 200 names which hint at his various roles. He was Known as Yggr (terror) Sigfodr (father of Victory) and Alfodr (All Father) in the skaldic and Eddic traditions of heiti and kennings, a poetic method of indirect reference, as in a riddle. Some epithets establish Odin as a father god: Alföðr "all-father", "father of all"; Aldaföðr "father of men (or of the age)"; Herjaföðr "father of hosts"; Sigföðr "father of victory"; Valföðr "father of the slain"." http://odin.software.informer.com/wiki/

 

[Cactus Pete]

Interesting, Wassame. "Father of Victory" -- like that.

 

[Dhoomstriker]

Hmmm, the angle of the River in the Civ 4 screenshot does not appear to match any particular bend in the real Rhine River.

I do, however, spot what looks to be a Lake or a Coastal square at the river's mouth in the south.


We have played a Resourceless BOTM before and many players were able to succeed with it. Still, that start was a lot nicer, in that we actually had more than 1 Hills square where our Settler started. Even if Resources do appear in the hidden squares upon settling in-place, it looks like we'd have a rather production-poor capital, so, I, too, am tempted to go exploring with the Settler.

 

[jesusin]

What does Control+R do?

Show/hide resource bubbles.

 

[DynamicSpirit]

We have played a Resourceless BOTM before and many players were able to succeed with it. Still, that start was a lot nicer, in that we actually had more than 1 Hills square where our Settler started. Even if Resources do appear in the hidden squares upon settling in-place, it looks like we'd have a rather production-poor capital, so, I, too, am tempted to go exploring with the Settler.

Agreed. I'm sure this is not a resourceless map (for a start, it has hills and hills can randomly pop some resources beyond the control of the mapmaker, which is why the resourceless map from a while ago also had no hills).

Jesusin does seem to be getting quite adept at eating all the food from the starting area, forcing us to have to go hunt elsewhere for it. At least this time there are obvious hills to move the scout and settler to, and it looks like there's not many forests to obscure the view from the hills, so we should quickly be able to get a good view of the land around.

 

[Dhoomstriker]

Agreed. I'm sure this is not a resourceless map (for a start, it has hills and hills can randomly pop some resources beyond the control of the mapmaker, which is why the resourceless map from a while ago also had no hills).

I know the game that you're talking about and I'm pretty sure that it was a WOTM where we started near Flood Plains and 10 billion Forests, with Korea to the NE, Huayna to the north, and the other AIs to the west.

I was referring to a BOTM back when Ribannah was still playing where our starting area didn't have Resources and where we were "blocked in" by an AI (I think Toku) on a peninsula without Resources (or at least with very few Resources--my memory is a bit hazy--maybe there was a Dye or something at the end of the peninsula) but with room to settle a few Cities. In that game, someone (Jesusin, I think) popped Tin in a Hills Mine due to an Event and then started complaining about getting "too lucky."

Jesusin does seem to be getting quite adept at eating all the food from the starting area

Perhaps he is taking his (old) signature's smiley a little too literally...
Although. instead of reading "Are you going to eat that? " it should probably say "Are you hungry? Too bad, I already ate it! "

At least this time there are obvious hills to move the scout and settler to, and it looks like there's not many forests to obscure the view from the hills, so we should quickly be able to get a good view of the land around.

Well, even if there are Food Resources within our fat cross, hiding them from view definitely cuts down on the (productive) discussion in the pre-game thread.


By the way, if it sounds like we're picking on you, Jesusin, it's because we all love you and appreciate the hard work that you put in here!

 

[Htadus]

Just looking at the start location make me have nightmares about starvation. What happened to our food loving mapmakers? .

 

[Nicol.Bolas]

I don't see any resourcess

I will probably SIP, rather then go for a 10turns tour to find nothing

 

[pnp_dredd]

How long can a settler wander for before barb animals become an issue?

 

[Conquistador 63]

^ I think barb animals start spawning on turn 5.

My guess about this game: could it be the "Lakes" mapscript, with some rivers added? I also suspect there is tundra to the N. Scout will go NW-W to check that area, and after that, most likely, settler will move southbound looking for food in the greener area.

 

[Ronnie1]

There is definitely tundra on the edges of the tiles NW. It looks like possibly river delta to the SW indicating coast or a lake maybe. Scout NW>W to the hill for a good look. Settler, I'm actually thinking of moving 1S>1E onto the forest tile. I think if there is any food visible from there, that tile being riverside would make a good city site. I should be able to read the edges of the map a little better with the actual save.

Barb animals will definitely appear by turn #7, maybe sooner!

 

[LowtherCastle]

Thanks a billion for all the food, jesusin. I'm sending you a tiny tartuffi in a teacup...

 

[High King J.J.]

To state the not so obvious(?): if this is closely based on existing terrain in RL, we may not be in the Ruhr area, but then again coal and iron are not yet discovered. Maybe we are close to the source, if the water 2SW is a lake. Unless the map is turned around, maybe 90 degrees counterclockwise and we are closer to the delta. But the woods could be Schwarzwald, the Black forest and France is probably close by (we need to build the GW...err the Siegfried line before the french build the Maginot line. But we are in vanilla so forget that.) Guess the Vikings are lurking somewhere to the north, English in the northwest and Mongol hordes invade from the east. Caesar's legions await in the south and Alex is his charming self in the southeast.
England is not on a separate island because the cold climate has so much water trapped in the polar ice caps and the channel is dry land.
I'm probably completely wrong about everything. But the Ring is the Ruling Ring and we must find and take it from Gollum, Bilbo or Frodo. Right?
With the Panzers we must beware the

Can't wait for the save. Must freeze myself in the ice and have someone thaw me on the fool day.

 

[DynamicSpirit]

There is definitely tundra on the edges of the tiles NW. It looks like possibly river delta to the SW indicating coast or a lake maybe. Scout NW>W to the hill for a good look. Settler, I'm actually thinking of moving 1S>1E onto the forest tile. I think if there is any food visible from there, that tile being riverside would make a good city site. I should be able to read the edges of the map a little better with the actual save.

Barb animals will definitely appear by turn #7, maybe sooner!

Agreed. I also wonder if we see desert to the West, by the river delta?

Given that tundra, would we be better off presuming that we will not settle NW, so there's no point exploring in that direction, and therefore moving both the scout and the settler Southwards, on the assumption that that's where the best land for settling is likely to be?